The bulk of the meat trays currently in use for the packaging of raw or partially prepared foods, such as cuts of meat, sausages and meat patties, are formed from polystyrene or from inexpensive wood pulps which are surface treated with various grease-resistant compounds. Such trays have numerous disadvantages. In the case of polystyrene trays, they are neither biodegradable nor are they capable of being incinerated without producing toxic waste. While biodegradable, trays formed from wood pulp lack sufficient grease proofness, particularly where a relatively long shelf life is required, and in addition they often contain undesirable toxic contaminants, such as dioxins, which have become of increasing concern because of their carcinogenic properties.
While efforts have hitherto been made to improve existing wood pulp trays by adding synthetic polyolefin fibers to the furnish, trays formed using such synthetic fibers have fallen short of providing food trays which are both readily biodegradable and at the same time provide effective grease proofness over an extended period of time.